ZIP 35118 vs ZIP 35005

This side-by-side compares ZIP 35118 (Mulga, AL) and ZIP 35005 (Adamsville, AL) using the same Census ACS 5-Year table fields for both — no averages swapped in, no national proxies. ZIP 35118 has a population of 3,138 at 33 people per square mile, while ZIP 35005 has 7,942 at 89 per square mile. That difference in population size and density alone reshapes how every other metric should be interpreted — a higher-income ZIP with 1,200 residents behaves very differently from one with 45,000.

On income and education, ZIP 35118 reports a median household income of $64,375 against $59,125 in ZIP 35005, with per-capita income of $29,434 vs $29,866. The share of adults holding a bachelor's degree or higher is 15.9% in 35118 and 14.7% in 35005. Poverty rate reads 14.0% vs 12.7%, and unemployment 2.8% vs 3.6% — these four fields alone drive most of the difference in the scorecard grades you will see for each ZIP.

Housing separates these two ZIPs further: median home value sits at $164,800 in 35118 versus $142,900 in 35005, with median rent of $1,177 and $1,234 per month respectively. Homeownership rate is 82.4% vs 81.3%. When reading the comparison table below, focus on paired metrics rather than single winners — a ZIP with lower home values and lower income is not strictly "worse" if rent-to-income ratios and commute times land in the same zone. Every value is pulled from the exact same ACS table so the two columns are genuinely comparable.